As much blame has been (deservedly) heaped upon Tino Sunseri, he was not helped by his wide receivers last year. Plenty of drops on their part, not great effort at points, clear lapses of concentration, and sloppy route running. They generally did little to help. Yes, they were no longer in a pro-style system, and it wasn’t playing to their strengths, and they had to learn a new system. Well, those excuses wore thin with Sunseri, so they should not be allowed to excuse their performance.
Devin Street particularly frustrated me. He seemed to continually not fight for passes if there was any chance the corner was going to be able to battle for the ball. In the second half of the season, he began to show more fight and desire. Showing flashes of the skill to match his natural size, strength and athleticism. Something he is hoping to take into this season.
Pitt will need Street to become that player this season, along with senior wide receivers Mike Shanahan and Cam Saddler. Young pass catchers such as redshirt junior Ed Tinker, redshirt sophomore Brendon Felder and sophomore Ronald Jones also will be in the mix before coaches settle on a rotation at the end of camp.
Street said the new offense under Chryst allows him to diversify his role, line up in the slot or split to the sideline, with several different routes in his playbook.
“Last year, I ran 10-15 routes,” he said, “but this year I can run anywhere.”
His standing as a redshirt junior all but demands more productivity.
“It’s crunch time,” he said “It’s time to turn it up.”
Street is a strider. His long legs allow him to move swiftly, and pick up speed. But it is not explosive or sudden. And it definitely doesn’t corner well. It builds. Get him the ball heading north or south and he can turn it up. Have him going east or west, or come back for the ball and there aren’t going to be yards after the catch. He definitely will be in a position to have a huge year.
Assuming Mike Shanahan’s hamstring recovers soon, should also have a good season. He very much looked ill-fitting in the spread offense last year. Not being able to run routes — only to spots was very uncomfortable for him.
Cam Saddler is a big question mark to me. The opposite of Shanahan. Until his injury in the M*A*S*H game that was UConn, he was having a very good season in an offense that was made for him. He’s also in his final year, so he wants success. And he is working at it. To the point where his mouth has not run quite as much.
“The offense is a little complicated,” Saddler said after practice Tuesday. “It’s kind of hard for me to run my mouth like usual. I have a lot of learning to do.”
The leadership role among Pitt’s wide receivers was thrust upon Saddler this week, with veterans Mike Shanahan (hamstring) and Devin Street (knee) idled by injuries.
“I miss my big dog,” Saddler said of Shanahan, also a fifth-year senior.
But Saddler has little time for anything other than worrying about his assignments while he tries to unlearn what former coach Todd Graham taught him.
“Details,” said Saddler, when asked how Chryst’s offense differs from last year’s no-huddle attack. “Last year, it was, ‘Get to a spot and hope to get the ball.’ Now you have to be in the right spot to get the ball.
“You have to hone in on the details — route depths, splits, little things. That’s kind of the part I struggle with. I’m having a little trouble the first week and a half.”
Saddler, despite the injuries (and his size) that have limited him in his Pitt career, has remained one of the popular players because of his honesty — and humor. Whether with the team or himself.
And it’s not like he still doesn’t find some time to talk.
But Chryst does draw a line when that competiveness could potentially hurt the team, and that was the case Wednesday morning when redshirt senior receiver Cameron Saddler and freshman cornerback Jahmahl Pardner engaged in a little post-play activity.
That activity drew Chryst’s ire, and he sent both players off to run laps around Pitt’s indoor practice field.
“If you fight, you’re out of the game,” Chryst said after practice. “So we can’t reward them with playing; playing’s a privilege, and they’ve got to know that it’s self-control.
“It doesn’t matter what happened, what started it; you’ve got to have enough self-discipline to not do that to your team.”
That applies to everyone, including veterans like Saddler. The redshirt senior seems to have earned the respect of the coaching staff for his consistency and leadership, but Chryst and the assistant coaches won’t tolerate actions that can hurt the team in a game. The foundation for games is laid in practice, so a screw-up in practice is handled like a screw-up in a game.
So… players are going to run laps during the game?
The altercation with Pardner had been building with Pardner being placed on Saddler for the last few practices.
Pardner has been working at nickel-back in recent practices, so he often draws the assignment of covering Saddler in the slot. The two have had some good battles this week, and while Saddler usually “wins” the reps, the freshman has had a few “wins” of his own.
“They put a freshman on me, and I felt a little disrespected,” Saddler said on Tuesday. “I had to let him know I’m still the big dog around here.”
Ever loquacious, Saddler naturally took a few opportunities to verbally express his displeasure with Pardner’s play. That back-and-forth led to Wednesday morning’s dust-up. Chances are probably pretty good that the tensions between the two drop down a few levels following Chryst’s response.
To keep this clear, Saddler is the big dog around there, but Shanahan is his big dog. This is not at all getting uncomfortable. Time to move on.
With both Street and Shanahan sidelined with some injuries in camp along with points without Ed Tinker and Brandon Ifill (not to mention Salath Williams transferring down to IUP), that gives some of the other receivers a chance to show what they can do going against the first team defense.
Among the chief beneficiaries of the injury-related extra work have been sophomore Ronald Jones and senior Josh Brinson. Both entered camp firmly on the second team behind Shanahan, Street, and redshirt senior Cameron Saddler. But with two of those three on the sidelines, Jones and Brinson have ascended to the first team.
Jones may have been slightly overlooked due to his diminutive stature – 5’8″ 170 – but he has been one of the more impressive receivers in camp. In recent practices he has been working at several positions, not just slot receiver, and making catches on a variety of routes. His speed allows him to turn the corner and be a threat on crossing patterns, but he has also used that speed to create separation running down the sideline or down the seam.
But Jones has also been reliable on medium-distance routes as well, showing sure hands and a good feel for getting the ball. His work this week has shown that he has potential beyond the spread-offense speed-machine many considered him to be when he came to Pitt last year.
Brinson, a junior-college transfer from El Camino College, has also made the most of the opportunities he’s getting with Shanahan and Street out. His consistency in route-running seemingly improves with every practice, and when the pass is on target, he comes down with it more often than not.
A walk-on named Chris Wuestner has actually been looking good. Suprisingly (and disappointingly) Brandon Felder who transferred from UNC last year has not stepped up with any consistency.
a “Big Dog” is not a WR with 29 catches and 281 yards in 3 years… he felt disrespected with a frosh covering him.. go get’m Pardner.
Lots of talk from a little guy who has yet to back it up.
Here is your warning.
This is not a message board. If you wish to dominate the conversation with nothing but your POV, or try to provoke go there and start a thread or start a blog of your own.
If you are of the opinion that you are “speaking truth to power.” Please go away. Nothing shows how a person believes in their own opinion and self-importance more than all else than that kind of self-delusion.
Your willingness to use what is clearly Saddler’s tongue-in-cheek humor, and a guy who has always had fun talking as evidence of his bad character is just that.
I don’t have the time or patience to police and respond to all comments. I will simply blacklist you from the site if there is an ongoing problem.
You may see yourself as a victim of others. The reality is the only victimhood from which you suffer is your past actions on other blogs that has proven so tiresome, antagonistic and useless.
I’ll also take this time to remind everyone that personal attacks on players and others who comment are not welcome. Obviously there is a lot of distaste for Joe D. First rule, don’t take the bait. Don’t fall into the pit.
Believe it or not, contrary and disagreeing views are accepted here. Discussions are welcome. Trying to make the comments your own personal forum are not.
I am looking to see how Street plays under Chryst’s system. I think the system + motivation will provided for a big year.
Question..
The Pitt football marketing campaign… billboards, pics on tics, etc.. what players are on those??
I don’t live in Pittsburgh. I don’t even have my season tix. One of our group holds them all. So I don’t know.
Here’s a pic for anyone to help of the players on the season tix.
they got helmets on… can’t figure out who is who.. I see Tags.. I think Sunseri.
g to back it up. Like most Gateway Division I recruits has not lived up to the hype.
With a 9 game ACC FB schedule I say there are better national opponents to play (ND, Navy, even PSU later) and 18 ACC BB games.
Pitt already plays plenty of local BB teams.
bordering on being banned.
Talking football for a moment, a sincere question: Can someone explain to me why some people are high on Street going to the NFL after this year? Obviously I am no NFL scout, but I have not been impressed with his route running or his acceleration. Sure he has a big body, but I feel like he would need to have a monster year to draw NFL attention and with Tino Two Quarters (’cause he’s only good for two quarters, get it?) at the helm, I just don’t see that happening.
Shanahan may make a little comeback this year with an offense that is more suited for him … but I also like the idea of using Carswell with Graham or Holtz
Playing them in FB, though, would need to not be at the expense of not playing at least one other quality OOC opponent (e.g., ND, Navy, PSU, other random major opponnet)annually. I never liked playing two or more OOC cupcakes just to pad the record. Odds are that in most years at least one of the ACC opponents will be performing at the MAC level–like Maryland would be this year and Duke is in most years. Yep, IMHO, one cupcake OOC each year is enough.
Can anyone name those 5 players on the tixs?
Are they pittsburgh/wpial kids?
One year, Navy and ND. The next year, PSU and WVU. (or any combination thereof)
Although in reality, how many teams of the Big 5 (or 6) conferences only have one ‘cupcake’ on the schedule each year? Teams like to have at least 7 home games per so a game every 3 or 4 years won’t be out of the question.
Bball can be played every year. I like the idea of 2 games per season with WVU as well. Quality non-conference competition. National TV. Minimal travel expenses.
It is time for Cam to back up his talk and he will, barring injury. But wide receivers have to have the mentality of a linebacker and the grace of Nijinsky. They have to snot nose block and the next play lope past others.
I perceived the bad play from wideouts last resulted from the players not liking Grahams offense and Graham himself. Am I imagining things?
It seems that good running opens the passing game far better than the opposite.
In Cincinnati, we will find out how ingrained our new system is because we aren’t going to “high octane” any team into submission. That game is important.
so, the “big dog” and the “bigger dog” are not featured on the commercials…
thanks for the info.
1. As pro Pitt as any player I’ve seen in awhile.
2. His career has been more limited by injuries than lack of talent, execution, or talking too much.
3. Have never heard him being a braggard, punk or loud mouth. When he has talked, it’s always in jest, loosening up the team and having fun, like the funny nephew we all have.
As for WVU. I changed my opinion over the summer. As some said above, I agree with the three teams we should play, (PSU, ND, and Navy).
I see no reason to continue with WVU in either sport. I’m sure this is very small percentage of how they recruit, but why let them in the ACC foot print at all. Let them be on an Island.
We will end playing PSU, ND or Navy, so their are rivalry games. We also have Va Tech and Maryland by proximity.
Also, another rival or two from the ACC will develop. There will be a bad call, an incident during a game, or an upset, us upsetting an ACC team when they are in the top 10 or top 20, or someone upsetting us, when we are in the top 10 or 20 (hopefully someday), when a game is important to us. We will be just fine without WVU.
Let them be on an island a thousand miles from Iowa State, their closet team, and 2000 miles from the rest of their conference.
IMHO.
I really think his acl injury set him back. his explosiveness just didnt seem the same after he got hurt. i wish him the best and hope he can have a good season
Brandin Knight seems to be of the same mold as Cam Sadler then. Spoke with him at Fan Fest a couple years ago. He says his daughter thinks she owns “The Pete” He was also a big hit with my grandchildren!
Also, I mean rivalry with VT through BE years, and us having beaten them the last 3 in a row, 4 in a row this year would make it even better.
Maryland by proximity over time, and with the (always two games a year in hoops thing).
Get on the bus and trip to the airport somewhere in the southwest/midwest-25 minutes, long plane trip to PGH INT Airport-4 to 5 hours, getting through airport and onto bus-35 minutes, bus ride to Morgantown 1 1/2 hours, then the look on everyone’s faces when the bus pulls into the Super 8 Motel parking lot as they realize that their destination is out in the middle of butt fu*k nowhere! Yee Haa, PRICELESS.
I’m sure many of the fine folks from Lubbock, Ames, and Manhattan, Kansas will feel right at home “out in the middle of butt f*** nowhere”
There is no conference I loathe more than the Big 12. So glad Pitt did not join that cesspool. Would have wished WVU to rot eternally in a decrepit Big East, but being abolished to B12 is next best . . . good luck against Texas and OU, good luck with the travel, good luck with Texas running that show and good luck being stuck in football purgatory when that hideous amalgamation of schools finally fractures. ACC is stable. Look at the history, ACC has been around a lot longer than B12. Yeah, yeah, the money is a bit better but that aint everything fellas.
The script is located here:
On a less personal note perhaps, I’ve never been impressed by Saddler’s ability…seems to be much less shifty and fast than he was billed as coming in…not his fault of course, but he can control when he opens his yap. I always liked guys like Tags and Holley, who seem to never say much but are always flying around making plays and winning games. Seems that was Joe’s point, unless I missed a much harsher post he made? Eric Cartman anyone?
Frank MD
To laugh is to live
I’m a Tags fan myself…
the kid came in as a grey shirt…
and he the true representative for the university in so many ways. He is up for a humanitarian award for his work in Haiti.
They probably start thinking PGH, Philly, Balt/DC, NYC, Boston etc. etc. bigger cities in the NE, the NFL cities, whatever…..
Then they pull into Morganhole!!!!!!!!!! LMAO!!
Literally laughing out loud. That’s gotta be in a stand up routine somewhere.
Good stuff!!
In another serious point, I do think the Big 12 tilts way more in the direction of Austin than the ACC tilts towards the Carolina schools. Furthermore, you take away Texas, and I think it is a crippling blow to the Big 12. In the ACC, no school is bigger than the conference, so really big picture, really long term I think the ACC is a better place to be.
WE have given 16 all ready and we have to save 2 for the transfers we have that is a total of 18.
And if we save 2 for foster and johnson.
That only leaves one more so we might be done for now with the commits.
That opens up a few also.
Saddler is catching everything thrown to him in camp and he’s been the most productive WR so far – granted Shanahan and Street have been dinged up.
Saddler will see the ball this season and if you remember was starting to produce before he broke his sternum on a 40 yard TD play. He had 19 catches for 207 yards in 7.5 games… he’ll be good for us in 2013.
Rule – do not down grade the players (Reed: Myers is not even a Division 3 QB).
Rule 2 for Chas. Reed and the other homies: it is perfectly alright to slander any blogger with opinions contray to yours.
Every statement should start out “in my opinion” not so-and-so is an asshole and if he does not start reinforcing my, Reed’s, “Dr.” Tom’s beliefs I am going to ban him from the blog.
Do me a favor a take away this testostorne obsession I have become part of and please ban me for my contrary opinions. I am not as narcisstic as you I just want my school to succeed.
Please check and comment on any grammatical or spelling mistakes. Since the advent of the computer my abilities in both those areas has diminished.
However receiving my education during before the dark ages, early seventies I was trained in critical thinking and stirred by intellectual curosity as evidence of my choice of majors philosophy/sociology. Never took one Business course.
You want to be banned. Fine. You want to believe it’s because of your contrary views. Fine. You think yourself the victim. Fine. You think yourself some sort of martyr. Believe what you want. I’m done with it. You get your wish.
By my review of the logs, you have posted comments here dating as far back as 2007 (sometimes using “Dennis W.”). For more than a year, you have been commenting steady.
Feel free to go elsewhere.
With respect to the AD’s talking about Pitt playing WVU in any sport, I say “NO”. Reason, by not playing WVU, we keep them on an island and no connection to eastern football. It only benefits WVU because they need a nexus to the eastern football recruiting area. When their closest opponent is over 500 miles away, they will be in trouble. Just my thought on the subject and because I say that, Smiley will probably schedule them immediately because it wasn’t his idea.
WVU will lose its identity very soon and Oliver Luck understands the need to schedule eastern, recognizable teams in order to keep the fertile recruiting grounds viable. Any thoughts gents? AS far as Jody and other negative posters go, I agree, go elsewhere. Coaches, players and recruits read these blogs. Negativity is just not acceptable in my mind although constructive criticism is always appreciated.
Last year you once wrote “Fuck you!” to me because I apparently “made” you defend Tino…you actually wrote that on the blog. How’s that better than what Joe D or DRW have done? Should someone have banned you for that? Sorry to expose your undergarments, Mr. Stalin.
1. Given your description of the circumstances of how I said it, I’m rather sure that was tongue-in-cheek for that particular “fuck you,” so only in the strictest sense can you create a similar situation. Wait… AH, here it is
Yep, that particular one was definitely tongue-in-cheek. The first one, however, was heartfelt as you decided that my viewpoint on things was due to lowering my standards/hope for Pitt. Shockingly, I’m sure given my fascist tendencies that I did not (and still haven’t) banned you.
2. If you find how the site is run so odious and offensive to your personal freedoms, well, you have the freedom to go elsewhere. There is no barrier to exit.
3. Nice use of “Stalin” rather than “Hitler” so you can avoid Godwin’s Law.
Too much talk for a player that spends lots of time on the bench or injured in his career.
He relies upon the Wanny seniority system why he thinks he will be a starter.
I don’t buy the excuse of spread vs pro for a WR.. they are suppose to run a route a catch the ball. It’s not that hard. Spread is more short dink and dunk type passes.
Is Trent Coles playing DB or WR?